Seating was limited – but that didn’t stop countless county residents from showing up at the Wilson County Board of Education meeting on Monday night to hear the results of the Director of Schools search that began in early March.

Parents, teachers, students and coaches lined the back of the main meeting room – with many standing in the hallway – as the board unanimously selected Dr. Tim Setterlund to replace current director Mike Davis when his contract expires on June 30. Board members authorized chairman Don Weathers to finalize contract negotiations with Setterlund – which he said will take place this week.

“We shared some things that are in the contract with both of the final candidates,” Weathers said of the two finalists Setterlund and Dr. Donna Wright. “Now in order to employee Dr. Setterlund we have to finalize all the terms. I will be working with him over the next few days.”

Weathers said that selecting a new director was “a tough choice” because both Setterlund, the Assistant Superintendent of Memphis City/Shelby County Schools, and Wright, the Assistant Superintendent at Knox County Schools, were highly qualified. “I voted for Dr. Setterlund because for me personally it was his ability to answer difficult questions on the spot – to reach me with his answers. I felt like Dr. Setterlund was the right person for Wilson County,” he added.

Finalists were selected during a nationwide search by former Commissioner of Education Wayne Qualls’ business, Teams, Inc., which was retained by the board to conduct the initial search. Setterlund and Wright were invited to appear before the board for interviews twice in April.

Setterlund has a rich career history in education, which includes serving as a classroom teacher at Kirby High School from December 1980 to May 1985; teacher at Germantown High School from June 1985 to January 1988; Vice-Principal at Germantown High School from February 1988 to July 1992; Adjunct Professor at the University of Memphis from January 1992 to 1999; Principal of Collierville High School from July 1992 to December 2011; and his current position as the Assistant Superintendent of Memphis City/Shelby County Schools.

Staff Writer Sabrina Garrett may be reached at
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